


One Of Those Days

by larislynn



Category: Newsies (1992), Newsies - All Media Types, Newsies!: the Musical - Fierstein/Menken
Genre: Fluff and Angst, Fluffy Ending, Gender Dysphoria, Light Angst, Love Confessions, NB reader - Freeform, Other, Reader-Insert, they/them pronouns for reader
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-26
Updated: 2021-01-26
Packaged: 2021-03-18 15:14:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,239
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28994280
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/larislynn/pseuds/larislynn
Summary: Request: "Could you maybe do a newsies x reader with Crutchie? Comforting a reader who's having an especially bad dysphoria day? Also, if it's not too much trouble could you please use they/them pronouns if that's okay? Thank you so much!"Prompts: 67) “Sometimes it just all gets too much, y’know?” 69) “I don’t think I could love you anymore than I already do.” 87) “I love your voice” 96) “You’d make the best boyfriend”
Relationships: Crutchie (Newsies)/Reader
Kudos: 2





	One Of Those Days

You stared up at the ceiling, contemplating getting out of bed. While missing out on a day’s sales would be a nightmare, the prospect of facing the world today was even more of one. It had been a long night of trying to find sleep that never came, instead your mind reeled with one negative thought after another. 

With a sigh you rolled out of bed. You could try to get ready and If you ended up giving up halfway through, then at least you’d have made an effort. One thing you were thankful for was how few mirrors the lodging house had. It made avoiding them all the more easier.

Days like these, where it was hard to look at your body without it feeling  _ wrong, _ were the most difficult to get through. You just wanted to look the way you felt inside, but it wasn’t that easy all the time.

You found a loose shirt and slipped it on, trying to focus on getting ready on time. Crutchie’s voice could be heard down the hall. “Have you seen them?” he asked to some nearby newsies.

“Damn it,” you muttered. Of course he was going to come looking for you. There was no way you’d get out of selling now. 

The two of you had been selling papes together for a while now. While a lot of newsies preferred to sell alone, you had to admit there was something nice about having someone to spend time with. Days tended to drag on, but with Crutchie you never got bored. You’d always try to see who could come up with the best headlines, or just talk about anything and everything. 

You heard your door creak open and turned to greet him. “Hey, Crutchie,” you said. “I’m not feeling that great today, so I think I’m just gonna stay here.”

A look of concern flashed across his face. “Oh no, are ya’ sick? Maybe you should lie down. I can stay with you if ya’ want.”

You smiled, “No, I’m fine, really. It’s just one of those days.” 

He nodded in understanding. “We don’t have to sell today if you don’t wanna. I have some extra money saved up, why don’t we gets something nice from Jacobi’s?”

Shaking your head, you refused his offer. “Crutchie I can’t let ya’ do that. You should go out and sell, don’t lose a day on my account.”

“Nah, it’s no big deal. I’ve been needing a day off, anyways. Come on, you can tell me what’s wrong on the way.”

With a sigh, you begrudgingly agreed. When Crutchie put his mind to something there was no convincing him to do anything else. After tucking your hair into your cap, you got up and followed him to the lobby of the lodging house.

Stepping outside you were greeted by the stifling summer heat. “So what’s the matter?” 

You stared at the sidewalk, kicking a pebble as you walked. Glancing over you answered,  “Sometimes it just all gets too much, y’know? I just don’t quite feel right, and it ain’t easy to deal with.”

Crutchie nodded, “Is that the, whatcha call it? Dystopia?”

You smiled and nodded, “Dysphoria. It’s really bad today, and everything just feels so off.”

“What feels off?” he asked. “Maybe I can help.”

After a moment of consideration, you answered, “Well, for one thing, I don’t like the way my voice sounds, like it doesn’t fit who I am, but who the world expects me to be.”   
  


He took your hand in his, “I love your voice. It’s perfect, just like you.”

You felt yourself blush at his words. “Thank you, Crutchie.”

“Of course,” he smiled, pushing open the door to the diner. It surprised you that you were already there. While it was by no means a long walk, it felt a million times shorter than usual. Although whenever you were with Crutchie, time seemed to fly by. 

As you walked up to the counter, you realized that his hand was still intertwined with yours. Your heart skipped a beat, and you tried to ignore it. After all, he was just doing it to comfort you as a friend, right?

You had always seen him as just that, your best friend. But at the same time you felt something tig at your heart whenever you looked at him. He was always there for you, no matter what. For a moment you wondered what it’d be like if there was something more between you, but quickly shoved the idea away. You wouldn’t let yourself fall in love with your best friend, it could easily ruin everything. Unfortunately, it seemed too late for your mind to have a say in the matter, since your heart had already decided.

You were snapped out of your thoughts as you arrived at the counter. Jacobi sighed, “Let me guess, two waters?”

Crutchie shook his head and smiled, “Nope, we’s payin’ customers today.”

“Well then, grab yourselves a table and I’ll be over to take your order soon.” You both nodded and made your way to a table nearby. The diner wasn’t as crowded in the mornings as it usually was during lunch hours, so finding a nice table wasn’t much of a challenge. 

From where you were seated you had a clear view of the street, through Jacobi’s large front window. Day light filtered in, giving the store an ethereal energy, like it wasn’t quite grounded to reality. 

Crutchie sat across from you, his face lit up in the sunlight. You pretended to study the menu, while in reality you couldn’t look away from him.

What you didn’t know was that he was doing the same thing. His eyes studied you, from the way you fiddled with the brim of your cap, to the way you absentmindedly scanned the menu. He was entranced.

In a moment of courage, he spoke up. “Can I ask ya’ something?” 

You glanced up at him and grinned, “Well you just did, but yes.”

“I really like someone, no, more than that, I love them, but I’m scared to tell them how I feel. What if they don’t like me back?” he confessed hesitantly. 

You felt your heart wither in your chest, but you plastered a smile on your face. As his best friend you needed to be supportive, even if it hurt. “You should go for it, just tell them how you feel. You’d make the best boyfriend.” 

He nodded, his eyes meeting yours. “I’m in love with you.”

“Yeah, tell ‘em just like that,” you answered, looking down.

Crutchie took a deep breath before pushing on, “I just did.”

Your head shot back up. For a moment you were sure you misheard him, until you noticed the nervous look on his face. “You love me?” 

Crutchie smiled,  “I don’t think I could love you anymore than I already do.”

You reached across the table, taking his hand in yours. “I’m in love with you, too.” Before you could change your mind you brought your chair next to his and placed a soft kiss on his cheek. 

“Can I kiss you?” As soon as you nodded yes, his lips were on yours in a gentle kiss. 

When you broke apart, you noticed Jacobi was waiting nearby, clearly a bit annoyed. “I suppose you ain’t ready to order yet?”

“I think we’ll need another minute,” Crutchie replied with a grin.

**Author's Note:**

> Sorry this request to forever to complete, I've been so caught up with school that I haven't had much time to write! As always, kudos and comments are appreciated! Love you all! <3


End file.
